Based on European prototypes, they were designed by the Russ and Harrison architecture firm and built by N. P. Severin Company of Chicago.

Lionel Artis was chosen as the original apartment housing manager, a position he held until his retirement in 1969, a span of over thirty years.

[3][4][5][6] When it originally opened, Lockefield Gardens was racially segregated, but it allowed African-Americans something they rarely had: a community-oriented residence.

Due to income restrictions and more prosperous African Americans leaving, Lockefield Gardens began to decline.

A redevelopment plan in the 1970s was hoped to revitalize the district, but federal judge S. Hugh Dillin ruled that it would lead to continued segregation at the educational and residential level.

In 1983, after demolitions, only six units along Blake Street, out of the original twenty-four buildings, remained, despite protests by Indianapolis preservationists.

[4][5] The area now serves as an apartment complex on the IUPUI university campus, although urban professionals are invited to live there as well.